Get your tickets now to our popular social event this Thursday June 21 from 5-8 PM. Enjoy tasty appetizers and drinks with your neighbours in a favourite local restaurant. This event is supported by your membership fees, so tickets are only $15 each. Contact us at info@eauclaireca.com to order yours.

The 2018 ECCA Annual General Meeting takes place on Wednesday June 6 at Centennial Place, 250 - 5 Street SW (3rd floor, West Tower - Conference Centre). Updates will be provided on the operation of the ECCA as well as projects and news affecting our neighbourhood.

Registration is at 6:30 and the meeting runs from 7 to 9 PM.

Meeting agenda:

Presentation from Ward 7 City Councillor Druh Farrell

Reports from ECCA President and ECCA Treasurer

Updates on Eau Claire Planning & Development projects

Report on Community Initiatives

Election of new ECCA Directors

Wine & cheese will be served following the meeting. All residents are welcome and encouraged to attend.

The ECCA is proud to support the 2018 YMCA Strong Kids fundraising campaign. A team of intrepid ECCA board members and friends will be participating in the Cycle for Strong Kids on March 5, the campaign's official kick-off. Come cheer us on at 5:00 PM in the lobby of the Gray Family Eau Claire YMCA as we spin our little hearts out on stationery bikes. The more money we raise, the faster we will be motivated to spin!

Come one, come all! Please join your neighbours for the Eau Claire Community Association skating party on Sunday February 11 from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

It's the 8th year for this popular event on the Prince's Island Park lagoon. As always, free skate rentals and helmets are available for all ages courtesy of the KidSport skate shack. Our neighbours at Shaw are kindly providing free hot chocolate and cookies to keep your energy going. The roaring firepit will keep you warm no matter what the weather. Try your hand at pond curling, learn about local wildlife at the nature interpretation table, guess how many candies are in the KidSport fundraising jar and take it home! Your board members and volunteers look forward to seeing you there.

To help welcome Canadian Blood Services to the neighbourhood, the ECCA is holding a blood drive from November 15 to 30, 2017. The permanent donor clinic relocated to the Eau Claire Market in July, so it's easier than ever to give the gift of life close to home. The Eau Claire clinic is the largest in Canada, with 20 donor beds. The market's underground parking garage even has free designated stalls for donors.

The ECCA kicked off the blood drive by holding our November meeting at the new clinic and several board members rolled up their sleeves to donate. Did you know that every 60 seconds someone in Canada needs blood? You can read stories of real people helped by blood donations. Donors from 17 to any age are welcome - there is no longer an upper age limit. Take a quick quiz to find out if you are eligible to donate.

To make an appointment, call 1 888 2 DONATE (1-888-236-6283), book at www.blood.ca or use the GiveBlood app. Let the ECCA know about your donation through Twitter (@eauclaireca and ), Facebook (www.facebook.com/eauclaireca) or email (info@eauclaireca.com). Let's see how many donations we can make as a community. Remember, it's in you to give!

In order to address an imbalance in the distribution of population across wards, the City has changed some of the ward boundaries for the 2017 Election. As a result of the changes, most of Eau Claire remains in Ward 7; however a small portion of the community is now officially in Ward 8. For example, residences on the north side of 3 Avenue are in Ward 7; residences on the south side of 3 Avenue are in Ward 8. Use the 'Find my ward' look-up on the Elections Calgary website to confirm the ward for your street address.

The voting station for Eau Claire Ward 7 residents is the City Hall atrium (800 Macleod Trail SE). The voting station for Eau Claire Ward 8 residents is Kerby Centre (1133 7 Ave SW). Voting stations are open on October 16 from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

In celebration and recognition of Calgary’s gender and sexually diverse community, the Calgary Pride Parade will take place on Sunday, September 3rd from 12:00 PM until 2:00 PM. This year's festival anticipates over 60,000 attendees and everyone is welcome to join.

Parade Begins at NoonDeparting from 6 Ave and 3 St SE, the parade will run west along 6 Ave, turn North onto 6 St and end at 3 Ave. From there, participants will continue walking onto Prince’s Island Park where the Pride in the Park event will immediately get underway.

There are many ways that you can get involved, from volunteering, to decorating the front of your business (Calgary Pride encourages you to post photos on their social media), or even just setting up a chair and taking in the event. The Parade and Pride in the Park are free, all-inclusive events.

Road Closures and Parking RestrictionsTo accommodate this event and ensure public safety, the following road closures and parking restrictions can be expected:

Join us Sunday May 7 @10:30 - 1:00 PM as we explore the history of Calgary through the Eau Claire buildings and streets, the up and downs of its economy and a vision of its future as seen through the eyes of a hopeful newcomer and Eau Claire resident. Meet at the historic smokestack (and 'cow bench') at 2 Avenue and 3 Street SW. Read more about the walk and our route on the official website.

Jane’s Walks are free, locally organized walking tours, in which people get together to explore, talk about and celebrate their neighbourhoods. Where more traditional tours are a bit like walking lectures, a Jane’s Walk is more of a walking conversation. Leaders share their knowledge, but also encourage discussion and participation among the walkers.

The City of Calgary will be hosting a free Winter Fun Day this Saturday, January 28 from 11 AM to 3 PM at Prince’s Island Park. Enjoy a variety of family-friendly activities, including outdoor skating (weather permitting) and nature games, and warm up with complimentary hot refreshments (while quantities last) and a toasty fire. The event will also feature free horse-drawn wagon rides from noon to 2 PM. For more information, visit calgary.ca/canada150

It's time to join your neighbours for a day of skating and fun at the 7th annual Eau Claire Community Association Skating Party. We'll have the KidSport Skate Shack once again, so free skate rentals are available for all ages. As always we'll have games for non-skaters too and hot chocolate for everyone. And our popular pond curling is back - give it a try! See you on Sunday February 12 from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the Prince's Island Park lagoon.

In the summer of 2013, thousands of Calgarians helped their neighbours during and after disastrous flooding in and around our city. The following June the City of Calgary established Neighbour Day, in recognition of the tremendous community spirit that was demonstrated. Neighbour Day is now an annual occurrence in Calgary on the third Saturday of June, with grass-roots events taking place throughout the city.

The ECCA is proud to be hosting a Street Party to celebrate Neighbour Day 2016. On Saturday June 18 from 11 AM to 2 PM, you are invited to join us on 3 Avenue SW between 6 and 7 Street SW for a fun celebration of community.

Bring out your lawn chair and settle in to enjoy live music, food trucks, an art workshop, and a kids play area. Ask a neighbour to join you, and look forward to meeting more of us there!

The Annual General Meeting of the Eau Claire Community Association will be held on Wednesday June 8. Registration begins at 6:30 PM and the meeting takes place from 7 to 9 PM. Location is 250 5 Street SW (Centennial Place), on the conference level. For further details, check the event poster.

YMCA Strong Kids is an annual fundraising campaign to raise resources to support proven YMCA programs that give kids the opportunities they need to reach their full potential. The goal is to help kids live healthier, happier lives today, and grow into productive adults in the future.

Come join your neighbours and friends at the 6th annual Eau Claire Community Association skating party. Help us raise money for KidSport Calgary by taking part in the skate-a-thon and see how many laps you can skate around the lagoon. Try your hand at pond curling, enjoy free hot chocolate, free skate rentals, warm up by the fire and enjoy the best skating spot in town.

Check out the newest addition to the neighbourhood. At the west end of 2 Ave SW is the ECCA’s own Little Free Library. Built from a wooden wine box and branches gathered from last year’s Snowtember, the library is a free book exchange that invites you to ‘take a book, leave a book’. More photos are on our Facebook page. We hope you enjoy it!

All residents are encouraged to attend an important public forum on Wednesday October 21 at 6:30 PM to review the latest proposal for the Eau Claire Market redevelopment. This is an opportunity to become informed of the latest details and express your opinion before the proposal goes to City Council for review in December. The forum will take place on the 3rd floor conference level of the Centennial Place building (250 5 Street SW). Please click the poster below to view complete details. We hope to see you there!